And I forgot to mention the blatant penalty when Keane's legs were kicked away under him. An obvious penalty which the ref alone, amongst all the people there, contrived NOT to see, full frontal from a distance of a few yards! Disgraceful decision at an international tournament. Ref should be sent home or to the nearest opticians immediately!

look mate, you were poor and got spanked, stop trying to make excuses.

looking at you yesterday your probably the worst team in the whole tournament

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the reason the Penalty wasn't given is because the ROI wouldn't kick the ball out of play - bad sportsmanship. I believe they call it Karma.

DUNCAN & GALVIN:
"Retxrds" is spelt R E T X R D S. Try again and you might get on to the correct website!

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GAWA:
Sorry mate, dont get your point!

a croatia player was down injured in the run up to the penalty claim. ROI should have kicked the ball out. Can you imagine if he had of given a penalty with a Croatia player lying in a heap up the far side of the pitch? Im not saying two wrongs make a right but the ref evened things up.

GALVIN:
Are you sure it isnt a "U"?

Sometimes, its necessary.

unsighted goalie = UNLUCKY

shanked clearance to offside player = UNLUCKY

The question should really be: "Did you read my article?"

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U create ur own luck and since we are happy to sit back and let the other teams have the ball we wont get that luck of goal

sorry mate, i dont understand pikey or c h a v

You seem to have read me wrong. I reserve my "hatreds", as you term it, for specific well deserving targets which have little to do with "English pillagers" . I am descended from ancient "Scots pillagers" myself. However, I am actually an N. Ireland supporter who has the ROI as his second team as they are our fellow Irish neighbours.

"your actual descriptions are at odds with the truth" >>>>>>>>>> Really, please enlighten me

IMBACK:
"since we are happy to sit back" >>>>>>>>>> To be fair and to give credit were its due, I dont think the ROI sat back. I think it was more a case of being pushed back, at least where Duff and McGeady were concerned.

Yes but thats my point Croatia pushed us back and put us under pressure as result they got a lucky goal or two but that was down to them taking the game to us

IMBACK:
Maybe. It was a weird kind of game. They seemed to boss midfield. ROI improved later on when Walters came on and Duff started to remind us than even though he has lost some pace with age, he can still take the ball round people.

I feel against teams like Croatia the ROI have got to get men like McGeady, Duff and McClean running strong and wide and crossing/ cutting the ball back to Keane, Walters, Doyle, Long. Youve got to play to your strengths and the ROI are never going to play Spanish style basketball footy.

Will Lady Luck continue to frown on the ROI? You bet ye. Shes a whxre who has never been known to give an Irishman(North or South) an even break! Better to ignore the bxtch and make your own luck!

I 100% agree Reiver. I don't know how people see us as lucky. Anyone read our history? Potato famine killing a million, lucky.

Terry Henry hand ball, pure luck right there.

We are sooo lucky.

Agree though, Croatia were the better team, fair play to them, but all three goals were a wee bit unfortunate for us. The first goal was a whole host of bad luck, deflected cross wrong footed the whole defence then they block Shay's view.

I think it is more like seeing someone that is really big and calling him Tiny.

We just have to roll with him, they say it balances out, so maybe we will get a rub o the green against Spain.

MOGIEBHOY
"It balances out" >>>>>>>>>> Does it fxck!

"maybe we'll get a rub of the green against the Spanish" >>>>>>>>>> Hope not, thats the last thing we want! Give the Spanish the rub of the green and the Irish the rub of the saffron and red and maybe the Irish will get a few breaks for a change and WIN! We softened them up a bit for you back in 82 and 2005, so maybe you can finish the job! Good ...(you know what)

Ha, I suppose you are right, anything but a rub of green for us.

It is kind of a liberating position to be in now. No one expects anything from us now. Just go for it, even if we get hammered.

Didn't get the route one stlye of footy we played yesterday when everyone of the Croats were bigger than us. Silly footy. If we sit back and let Spain have posession it could be a cricket score. Still, stranger things have happened.

Reiver, i thank you sir, it is only football, and i certainly haven't given up the ship in our group, but, when you said it like it is about that mischievous dice tossing harlot's treatment of us north n south, i was laughing out loud , and have just stopped, it's funny because you're dead right. I suspect , like myself you've had your fill of lazy sports journalists alluding to it to fill column inches.Anyhoo, thanks again, you've put a spring back in the steps of the good folk of The Road

MILLTOWN:
Eeel sorry for Shay Given, though he would be the first to have a go at me if he heard me say that! Probably the nicest guy in the ROI team.

I

Probably the nicest guy in the ROI team.

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He was up in Belfast last year doing his coaching badges through the IFA - few of my mates met him in Cutters, said he was a good guy!